Dear subscriber
What are you going to celebrate at the end of 2024?
One of the things I've learned about helping people set and achieve their goals is that they get a lot done in the last few weeks of the year. Also, seeing what other people who are very similar to us are achieving is very inspirational - not in a competitive, making unhelpful comparisons way, but celebrating in a peer group with people who really care about each other. More about this later ...
"Reading is art"
Since I read this in Joseph Braun's newsletter I've told everyone who will listen. For an avid, eclectic reader like me it's a revelation that "the reader is an agent, equal to the writer, in the creative act of meaning." Can you relate to this? I used the ideas in Joe's newsletter in my blog post "You are not the work you do: You are the person you are" which was inspired by conversations with members of Drive, the Collaborative Network.
Most of the work I do is listening to people, helping them work through their ideas, prioritise, and action them. I find out a lot about the people as well as their businesses and this I know is true:
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.” ― Alexander Den Heijer.
If I can help you do more of the work that sparks a light in you, I'll be delighted!
These are just some of the talented people I have the privilege of working with - I hope they inspire you as much as they do me and each other:
Thor A Rain has worked with thousands of people and spent decades working on the ideas that have today been made available to everyone in the First Aid for Feelings Manual. I've seen at first hand how other people I've worked with have been helped by these ideas and I'm delighted to recommend it wholeheartedly. You can find out why it pays to be curious about feelings, why it's good to "Sherlock" them and how asking "Is it useful?" is better than being judgemental, and also help more people to get a copy here: First Aid for Feelings Manual Kudos too to Drive members Berenice Howard-Smith, Annie Deakins and Richard Slade for their part in making this happen.
Martyn Sibley is about to unleash more Purple Power into the world as he returns to his alma mater as a guest lecturer for a newly launched Disability and Entrepreneurship Course. There are lots of other purple plans afoot too!
Jo Twiselton is getting outstanding reviews for her work in ensuring that the wellbeing of people and the planet are at the heart of organisational change and reminding us all, every week, about the power of reflection and learning.
Gill Robinson is taking print and packaging to new levels, helping artists turn textiles into jigsaws and create interactive exhibitions as well as continually striving for green solutions at Nexus CPP
Jo Bryant is designing puppets and training paediatricians and other health care workers how to use them to facilitate difficult conversations. She has also designed pocket puppets for children who use them as secret supporters. Her newsletter is a delight!
Lauren Hug continues to challenge us all and the role we play in using social media as a force for good in her Digital Hope newsletter and books. Adrian Storey won awards for two of the films on which he was Director of Photography: "History, Mystery & Odyssey" and "Traces of the Soul" He has recently been to Milan to film calligrapher Nakajima Hiroyuki's work and performance at the "Scritto nella pietra" exhibition.
Clair and Richard Slade should be winning awards for their work with the art collective, Neotists, but they’re too modest to take credit for it! With 101 volunteers they put on a free two day music and arts event that attracted over 12,000 people and were also involved in organising over 30 music and culture events in their local market square. They’re now gearing up to do it all again next year!
Toni Hunter is challenging the status quo and making accountancy and LinkedIn fun! Her millionaire style tea break quizzes keep everyone guessing while providing valuable information about businesses finances. The hallow’een special is on death tax! Never say accountants are boring again.
Andy Boothman’s DressCode Shirts has been shortlisted for a retail space in the “Meanwhile On: Oxford Street” project – a huge achievement in competition with thousands of applications.
Bernie J Mitchell received one the best testimonials I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot!) for his work with owners of independent coworking spaces Jo Stansfield continues to do outstanding work in the field of responsible and ethical use of AI, reporting to parliamentary committees and delivering work on DEI, not to mention having a birthday celebration with the legend that is Dame Stephanie Shirley! (I’m so jealous!)
Nathan Whitbread’s work as a neurodivergent coach is having far reaching effects on people who had little idea about neurodivergence and how it affects all of us – in the workplace and our personal lives. I learn something new from him every day!
Berenice Howard Smith has not only been busy designing books and websites among other things but created and attended a huge gathering of people who support each other in the childless-not-by-choice community. The Full Stop CIC is gaining international followers and influencing workplace practices as well as providing opportunities for all of us to learn to be better friends and allies.
Sophie Wadsworth was flown to Houston, Texas from her base in Boston Mass, to support start up founders from Green Town Labs as they pitched for investment. Her role in helping people tell better stories is invaluable and inspiring.
And finally, Helen Lindop is testament to the power of doing useful things consistently, not re-inventing the wheel, and providing real value in the most practical, straightforward way that brings real results to every business.
“It’s the simple things that make the biggest difference in running a business, automating the stuff you keep repeating and ditching the stuff that’s a waste of time."
What's this got to do with luck?
One of my favourite books is The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp. In it she addresses the question of "How to be lucky":
The answer is: be generous.
"If you're generous to someone, if you do something to help someone out, you're in effect making them lucky. It's like inviting yourself into a community of good fortune. You invest in others, interest free with no IOU. Lucky people make other people feel lucky to be around them." Twyla Tharp
This is my world. I am the luckiest of lucky people because I'm surrounded by the most generous group of exceptionally talented folk who are consistently, persistently, generous to each other. If you would like to be more lucky, come and join us!
Next week we have two Zoom meetings (note change from BST to GMT if you're not in the UK!) Come along and meet some of these exceptional people and enjoy our unique style of networking that builds trust and great relationships.
So back to where we started ... this is the article I wrote for Indie Cambs about setting end of year goals - the 19th tip in the Work Smart Not Hard series. There are nine weeks left in the year ... 😄
Spending less time on social media (RIP Twitter), I've been writing a lot more on Medium - mostly about books I've read and things that inspire me or make me laugh like Times Change and We Change With Them
If you'd like to have a chat about anything to do with running your business, or would like to tell me how you're doing or share something interesting, just hit reply!
Best wishes
Ann
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